Method for producing fats or oils

Abstract

The present invention is directed to improving productivity of an enzymatic method for making esterified, transesterified or interesterified products. Specifically, a method that can greatly improve the productivity of enzymatic transesterification or esterification by deodorization alone, or by deodorization and purification of the initial substrate to extend the useful life of the enzyme is disclosed.

1. A method of making an esterified, transesterified or interesterified product comprising:
 (a) deodorizing an initial substrate, wherein said initial substrate comprises one or more fats or oils and contains constituents that cause or arise from fat or oil degradation, thereby reducing the constituents which cause or arise from fat or oil degradation in said initial substrate and thereby producing a deodorized substrate; 
 (b) contacting said deodorized substrate with a fat or oil modifying enzyme thereby making said esterified, transesterified or interesterified product; 
 
       wherein the half-life of said enzyme is prolonged. 
     
     
       2. The method of  claim 1 , wherein said initial substrate was previously deodorized. 
     
     
       3. The method of  claim 1 , wherein said deodorizing is a batch deodorization process, a semi-continuous deodorization process, or a continuous deodorization process. 
     
     
       4. The method of  claim 1 , wherein said deodorizing occurs from 25° C. to 320° C. 
     
     
       5. The method of  claim 4 , wherein said deodorizing occurs from 100° C. to 300° C. 
     
     
       6. The method of  claim 5 , wherein said deodorizing occurs from 150° C. to 270° C. 
     
     
       7. The method of  claim 1 , wherein said deodorizing occurs at a pressure of 0 to 760 torr. 
     
     
       8. The method of  claim 7 , wherein said deodorization occurs at a pressure of 1 to 10 torr. 
     
     
       9. The method of  claim 1 , wherein said initial substrate comprises butterfat, cocoa butter, cocoa butter substitutes, illipe fat, kokum butter, milk fat, mowrah fat, phulwara butter, sal fat, shea fat, borneo tallow, lard, lanolin, beef tallow, mutton tallow, animal fat, canola oil, castor oil, coconut oil, coriander oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, hazlenut oil, hempseed oil, linseed oil, mango kernel oil, meadowfoam oil, neat's foot oil, olive oil, palm oil, palm kernel oil, palm olein, palm stearin, palm kernel olein, palm kernel steam, peanut oil, rapeseed oil, rice bran oil, safflower oil, sasanqua oil, soybean oil, sunflower seed oil, tall oil, tsubaki oil, marine oils which can be converted into plastic or solid fats, menhaden oil, candlefish oil, cod-liver oil, orange roughy oil, pile herd oil sardine oil, whale oil herring oil, 1,3-dipalmitoyl-2-monooleine (POP), 1(3)-palmitoyl-3(1)-stearoyl-2-monooleine (POSt), 1,3-distearoyl-2-monooleine (StOSt), triglyceride, diglyceride, monoglyceride, behenic acid triglyceride, trioleine, tripalmitine, tristearine, or combinations of any thereof. 
     
     
       10. The method of  claim 1 , wherein said enzyme is a lipase obtained from a cultured eukaryotic or prokaryotic cell line. 
     
     
       11. The method of  claim 10 , wherein said lipase is a 1,3-selective lipase. 
     
     
       12. The method of  claim 1 , wherein said esterified, transesterified or interesterified product comprises 1,3-diglycerides. 
     
     
       13. The method of  claim 1 , further comprising contacting said enzyme with said deodorized substrate in one or more jacketed columns; and, regulating the temperature of one or more of said initial substrate, said deodorized substrate, said esterified, transesterified or interesterified product, or said enzyme. 
     
     
       14. The method of  claim 1 , further comprising mixing said deodorized substrate with said enzyme in one or more tanks for a batch slurry reaction. 
     
     
       15. The method of  claim 1 , wherein said deodorized substrate is mixed with monohydroxyl alcohols or polyhydroxyl alcohols prior to contacting said deodorized substrate with said enzyme; and
 wherein said esterified, transesterified or interesterified product is formed from the esterification, transesterification or interesterification of said monohydroxyl alcohols or polyhydroxyl alcohols. 
 
     
     
       16. The method of  claim 15 , wherein said monohydroxyl alcohols or said polyhydroxyl alcohols are primary, secondary or tertiary alcohols of annular, straight or branched chain compounds. 
     
     
       17. The method of  claim 15 , wherein said deodorized substrate is mixed with polyhydroxyl alcohols which are selected from the group consisting of glycerol, propylene glycol, ethylene glycol, 1,2-propanediol and 1,3-propanediol and combinations of any thereof. 
     
     
       18. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the deodorization holding time is from 5 minutes to 10 hours. 
     
     
       19. The method of  claim 18 , wherein the deodorization holding time is from 30 minutes to 3 hours. 
     
     
       20. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the deodorization stripping gas is steam, and the stripping steam ratio is 1-15 wt % of the initial substrate. 
     
     
       21. The method of  claim 20 , wherein the deodorization stripping gas is steam, and the stripping steam ratio is 1-5 wt % of the initial substrate. 
     
     
       22. The method of  claim 1 , further comprising preventing oxidative degradation of said initial substrate, said deodorized substrate, said esterified, transesterified or interesterified product or said enzyme. 
     
     
       23. The method of  claim 9 , wherein said initial substrate comprises partially or fully hydrogenated processed fats or oils, or fractionated fats or oils thereof, or combinations of any thereof. 
     
     
       24. The method of  claim 1 , further comprising contacting said initial substrate or said deodorized substrate with one or more types of purification media thereby producing a purification media-processed substrate. 
     
     
       25. The method of  claim 24 , wherein one or more of said initial substrate, said deodorized substrate, said purification media-processed substrate, said esterified, transesterified or interesterified product and said enzyme are in an inert gas environment. 
     
     
       26. The method of  claim 25 , wherein said inert gas is selected from the group consisting of N 2 , CO 2 , He, Ar, and Ne. 
     
     
       27. The method of  claim 24 , wherein said purification medium is selected from the group consisting of activated carbon, coal activated carbon, wood activated carbon, peat activated carbon, coconut shell activated carbon, natural minerals, processed minerals, montmorillonite, attapulgite, bentonite, palygorskite, Fuller's earth, diatomite, smectite, hormite, quartz sand, limestone, kaolin, ball clay, talc, pyrophyllite, perlite, silica, sodium silicate, silica hydrogel, silica gel, fumed silica, precipitated silica, dialytic silica, fibrous materials, cellulose, cellulose esters, cellulose ethers, microcrystalline cellulose; alumina, zeolite, starches, molecular sieves, previously used immobilized lipase, diatomaceous earth, ion exchange resin, size exclusion chromatography resin, chelating resins, chiral resins, rice hull ash, reverse phase silica, bleaching clays, and combinations of any thereof. 
     
     
       28. The method of  claim 24 , wherein said purification medium is silica having a surface area from 200 to 750 m 2 /g, a mesh value from 3 to 425, an average particle size from 4-200 μ, an average pore radius from 20 to 150 Å, and an average pore volume from 0.68 to 1.15 cm 3 /g. 
     
     
       29. The method of  claim 28 , wherein said silica is 35-60 mesh with an average pore size of about 60 Å. 
     
     
       30. The method of  claim 24 , wherein said one or more types of purification media and said enzyme are packed together or separately in one or more columns through which said initial substrate, said deodorized substrate, said purification media-processed substrate or said esterified, transesterified or interesterified product flows. 
     
     
       31. The method of  claim 30 , wherein said columns are jacketed columns, further comprising regulating the temperature of one or more of said initial substrate, said deodorized substrate, said purification media-processed substrate, said one or more types of purification media and said enzyme. 
     
     
       32. The method of  claim 24 , wherein said purification media-processed substrate is prepared by mixing said initial substrate or said deodorized substrate with said one or more types of purification media in a tank for a batch slurry purification reaction or mixing said initial substrate or said deodorized substrate in a series of tanks for a series of batch slurry purification reactions. 
     
     
       33. The method of  claim 32 , wherein said purification media-processed substrate is separated from said one or more types of purification media via filtration, centrifugation or concentration prior to reacting said purification media-processed substrate with said enzyme. 
     
     
       34. The method of  claim 24 , further comprising mixing said purification media-processed substrate with said enzyme in a tank for a batch slurry reaction, or flowing said purification media-processed substrate through a column containing said enzyme. 
     
     
       35. The method of  claim 30 , wherein a bed of said one or more types of purification media is placed upon a bed of said enzyme within a column. 
     
     
       36. The method of  claim 25 , further comprising preventing oxidative degradation to one or more of said initial substrate, said deodorized substrate, said purification media-processed substrate, said esterified, transesterified or interesterified product and said enzyme. 
     
     
       37. The method of  claim 1 , wherein said deodorized substrate has a peroxide value of less than 5 mEq/kg oil. 
     
     
       38. The method of  claim 37 , wherein said peroxide value is less than 2 mEq/kg oil. 
     
     
       39. The method of  claim 38 , wherein said peroxide value is less than 1 mEq/kg oil. 
     
     
       40. The method of  claim 1 , wherein said initial substrate is bleached, deodorized, refined, or a mixture thereof.